This invention relates to a coupling for joining two bodies together and more particularly to a coupling for joining a seat back to a seat cushion.
An automotive seat assembly typically consists of a lower, generally horizontal, seat cushion and a seat back extending upwardly from the rear of the seat cushion. To reduce the size of shipping containers, the seat back is often shipped disassembled from the seat cushion. During assembly of an automobile, the seat cushion is installed in the vehicle body and the seat back is attached to the seat cushion at a later point in the assembly process.
The attachment of the seat back to the seat cushion has generally required one or more fasteners such as nut and bolt assemblies. Once assembled, an upholstery cover or trim member may be required to cover the fastener and provide a finished appearance. The above steps of attaching the seat back are both time consuming and labor intensive during the assembly process.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a simple coupling for the seat back which requires no separate attaching hardware to reduce the vehicle assembly time. The coupling of the present invention includes a plate mounting member extending upwardly from the seat cushion and a housing attached to the seat back which is open at its lower end to enable the housing to be slid over the plate member. The plate member and housing are configured so that when the plate member is fully inserted into the housing, one sidewall of the housing is seated into a recess in the plate members prevent withdrawal of the plate member from the housing. A wedge within the housing forces the housing sidewall into the recess. In a typical seat assembly, a coupling is provided at each lateral side of the seat assembly. The plate members extending upward from the seat cushion can be rotatably mounted to the cushion to enable the angle of the seat back to be varied.
The seat back is mounted to the seat cushion by sliding the seat back downward onto the plate members until the plate members have been fully inserted into the housings. Once fully inserted, the wedge in each housing forces the plate members to move laterally relative to the housings to seat a sidewall of the housing into the recess in the plate members. If removal of the seat back is necessary to service the vehicle, the wedges can be raised to free the plate members, allowing the plate members to move laterally to unseat the housing sidewalls from the recesses to enable removal of the seat back.
In addition to reducing assembly time, the coupling has the advantage that the seat back can be fully trimmed with only a pair of slots on its lower side for reception of the plate members. These slots, being on the lower edge of the seat back, are not visible when the seat is assembled. It is a further advantage of the coupling that as a result of its simple assembly, there is little chance for the coupling to be improperly assembled. Furthermore, when the coupling is assembled, an audible "snap" will indicate that it has been fully assembled.
Further objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following description and the appended claims when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.